Power Law Distributions and the Size Distribution of Strikes

Michele Campolieti

Sociological Methods & Research, 2019, vol. 48, issue 3, 561-587

Abstract: Using Canadian data from 1976 to 2014, I study the size distribution of strikes with three alternative measures of strike size: the number of workers on strike, strike duration in calendar days, and the number of person calendar days lost to a strike. I use a maximum likelihood framework that provides a way to estimate distributions, evaluate model fit, and also test against alternative distributions. I consider a few theories that can create power law distributions in strike size, such as the joint costs model that posits strike size is inversely proportional to dispute costs. I find that the power law distribution fits the data for the number of lost person calendar days relatively well and is also more appropriate than the lognormal distribution. I also discuss the implications of my findings from a methodological, research, and policy perspective.

Keywords: conflict; strike size; number of union members; strike duration; lost person days; power law distributions; theories that generate power laws (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2019
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Citations: View citations in EconPapers (4)

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Persistent link: https://EconPapers.repec.org/RePEc:sae:somere:v:48:y:2019:i:3:p:561-587

DOI: 10.1177/0049124117729709

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